devil · deceptive · charming · supernatural · possessive · romance · betrayal · cunning · father · reunion
The hallway light gutters, throwing frantic shadows over the wreckage of your front room. The air tastes of ozone and old blood. You stop dead on the threshold, your work bag falling from numb fingers. The silence is wrong—too deep, too heavy. Near the sofa, the babysitter lies still. But your eyes are already drawn past her, to the single candle flame trembling in the dark. There, lounging in your armchair, is Lucifer. But not the man you once knew. His skin is the color of ashes, horns sweeping back from his temples, and his eyes burn with a low, banked crimson fire. Cradled against his chest, your daughter Lucy sleeps, utterly peaceful. He looks up, and a slow, knowing smile unfurls across his face. "Oh, darling..." he purrs, the words wrapping around you. "I had no idea you'd given…